Technological advances in digital media players have created a new market channel for distribution of copyrighted content (e.g., music, video, pictures) to users. For example, a user can download and/or share (e.g., transfer) digital content via the Internet. Oftentimes, this download and/or transferred content can violate copyright laws and rights of the owner of the work.
Recent developments in audio compression technologies have been directed to digital rights management (DRM) mechanisms in order to control unauthorized distribution of copyrighted content. In general, these audio compression technologies make it feasible to download quality audio from the Internet expeditiously while limiting access and/or sharing of the content to only authorized users.
These compression techniques have revolutionized music distribution. For example, an hour of near CD-quality audio can be downloaded in less than five minutes using a standard home computer. Accordingly, publishers have tried to cope with this phenomenon by introducing and enforcing copyright protections via the compression techniques. Overall, unauthorized downloading and/or sharing have become a major legal issue for the music industry.
DRM is a mechanism for protecting the copyrights of digital content that is distributed over the Internet. A DRM system can also include the accounting for paying royalties to the authors of the material. For example, in the music industry, a typical DRM system can provide a container format that includes album and track titles along with a set of rules that can enforce copyright compliance. Accordingly, software and hardware media players should support the rules order to play back the copyrighted material.
With respect to portable devices, there are several possible file-based DRM engines required by mobile operators around the world. Unfortunately, today, it is not determined which DRM format a device will be required until a mobile operator and OEM (original equipment manufacturer) commence working together and well after product development has concluded.
What is needed is a system that defines a FDRM (file-based DRM) API layer such that mobile operators can choose to use any file-based DRM engine in their final product. Further, a need exists for a file-based DRM engine that is content agnostic. In other words, the content can range from an executable to a media file or ring-tone.